Head Over Heels in the Moment
by loveisfate
Summary: AU. I never really believed in fate or soul mates. In fact, I'd just about given up on love. Then I saw his face and something inside of me changed. Fate brought us both to this moment and even though I tried my hardest to turn away, she just kept pushing us towards each other. With every little "coincidence", like destiny. Based on a true story. NILEY.
1. Chapter 1 - A Little Tiny Coincidence

A/N: Hi guys! This is my first ever FanFiction so I hope you guys like it. Please leave some reviews telling me how you liked the story and what I can improve on.

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If this cruise ends up being anything like this car ride, I might have to throw myself overboard. That was the thought I kept repeating in my head as the car ride to the Port of Miami dragged on. Between my father's obnoxious country music blasting and my brother, Braison, and my sister, Noah, fighting over who would get the top bunk, I was beyond irritated. Silently counting down the minutes until we check into the cruise ship, where I can put some distance between my family and I.

I'm usually not this grouchy around my family, but it was simply too early for all this commotion. Granted it was only 9 AM but that's early for any teenager who makes the most out of their weekends by staying up until the crack of dawn. Anyways, my parents planned a family vacation so that we could all "bond" and spend time together. Joy. Don't get me wrong, I love my family but considering that Trace and Brandi decided not to come along, this meant that Braison and Noah would most likely be stuck under my supervision. That's not quite the vacation I had in mind. After the past few months, all I want is to lay out by the pool and soak in the sun, in utter relaxation.

Some backstory? Senior year has barely kicked off and it's already shaping up to be the worst year of my life. In a brief summary, I caught my boyfriend of almost 2 years cheating on me with this skank that goes to our school and just so happens to live down the street from him. Lucky me. One day over summer I decided to go to his house and surprise him before he left for work and I ended up driving right up to the heart wrenching scene. There he was on the front porch of his house in full lip lock with Skanky Pants. I guess he heard my car ease to a stop because he opened his eyes mid-kiss and made eye contact with me. I just gave him the most sarcastic smile I could muster and drove away and that was the end of that. So anyways, I'm not in the greatest of moods lately. I apologize for that.

"Daddy, does this ship have that chocolate night?", Noah screams over the music, pulling me out of my trance.

"The Chocolate Buffet? Yeah, it's on Thursday night I believe.", my dad responds while lowering the music. He turns towards me and briefly looks over his shoulder to say, "Hey Miles, you're awfully quiet back there. Aren't you excited?"

Seeing my dad in such a good mood makes me ease up a bit and I answer, "of course I'm excited, Dad. Just a bit tired." I shot him a genuine smile so he could tell that I meant it. I wasn't thrilled about this whole family vacation but I also didn't want to seem ungrateful to my parents so I'm trying to see the silver lining. Maybe this trip will completely change my life. Who knows, right?

After about 10 more minutes of driving and my mom screaming the lyrics to "Cruise" by Florida Georgia Line at the top of her lungs (ironic right?), I finally spot the familiar building where we've checked in several times before. The sourness drifts away a bit and I can feel the excitement slowly coming over my body. As the car comes to a stop in the parking garage, I'm the first one to fling my door open and jump out. "Let's get this party started", is all I can think.

A dozen suitcases, a quick raid of some vending machines and an hour later, we are finally in the waiting area counting down the minutes until boarding time. It seems like everyone's excited considering the fact that no one has bothered to sit, but have instead started forming a line. We join the line and I feel like I can finally take a breath and drink my Gatorade that I got from the vending machine earlier.

"Hey mom, can you hand me my drink from your bag?" I asked. My mom gives me the Gatorade and I proceed to try to open the bottle. For some reason the plastic holding down the cap of the bottle just wasn't breaking and I'm struggling to open the bottle. About a minute has elapsed and I have yet to have any luck with the stupid bottle. I guess my struggle became apparent to someone in the room because all of a sudden I feel an unfamiliar hand around mine.

Looking up, my gaze fell upon a pair of chocolate brown eyes and a genuine smile beaming at me. "Let me help you with that", the stranger said. He had short messy brown hair that was styled upwards, in a bit of a faux-hawk look. And even though I describe his hair as messy, it wasn't the kind of messy you'd find on an unkempt person. It was more of a sexy messy look that was definitely working for him. The unnamed boy (we will call him McHandsome from now on), was wearing a black Miami Heat jersey, some fitted blue jeans and a nice pair of high-top Nike's to match his jersey. As if he wasn't hot enough, the fact that he was wearing a jersey from my favorite basketball team definitely made him infinitely more attractive. His family was right in front of mine in line and apparently he saw my epic battle with the Gatorade.

I handed the bottle over to him without a second thought, still a bit stunned from the initial contact. Effortlessly and instantly, he snapped the plastic off the top and handed the open Gatorade back to me. It took me a second to reach out and grab my drink just because I was so speechless. I don't know if it was because of his mesmerizing eyes, his chivalrous act or his toned biceps that were clearly visible in his jersey. Perhaps a combination of all three. Either way, I was not reacting like a normal human being would.

"Uhh... Uhh.. Thank you...", I was finally able to mutter as I quickly took the bottle from his hand and proceeded to chug the liquid desperately.

"No problem", were the words that came out of the attractive stranger before me. And just like that McHandsome shot me a smile and turned back around to rejoin his family's conversation.

I'm pretty sure that my face formed the derpiest half smile ever in response to his perfect pearly whites. And just like that, I began to kick myself for my social awkwardness and my total lack of control in the situation. "Greaaaatttt. He probably thinks I'm weird as hell now. Between not being able to spit out a few words and the constipated expression that has just come across my face, I have completely scared away one of the hottest guys I've ever seen", I scolded myself. My luck with guys has truly been impeccable these past few months.

As I stand there replaying that embarrassing moment in my head, I hardly noticed the fact that the doors to board the ship were finally open and the line was slowly inching into the Norwegian Dawn. So much for being optimistic about this vacation, I've already made a fool out of myself. Ugh, why me God?


	2. Chapter 2 - Waves Are Too Mainstream

A/N: I just wanted to say thank you to the few that left reviews on my first chapter and to the few that favorited my story. Seeing your support made me very happy and motivated me to finish this chapter quickly! Hope you enjoy it!

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"Baby, you a song, you make me want to roll my windows down and cruise", my mom is singing as we walk through the doors of the ship. "You see what I did there, guys?"

Braison and Noah respond by laughing loudly and my dad gives my mom a bright smile. My mom, Tish, can be quite corny but we love her for it.

Still not completely over what happened less than half an hour ago, I keep quiet and find myself still feeling red in the face from embarrassment. I must say that I got lucky that my family didn't really witness the spectacle, otherwise Noah and Braison would be talking about it the entire trip. And my father would be giving me his famous inquisitive look; the one with the raised eyebrow that seemed like he was trying to look into your thoughts. How embarrassing would that have been?

Once on the cruise ship, the first thing we do is go towards the lunch buffet. Every time we board a cruise ship, we always have the same routine. My mom starts complaining about being hungry and once we all set our eyes on the long buffet tables, we can't help but lunge ourselves towards the delicious food. I know we sound like fat asses but if you've ever been on a cruise ship, you know exactly what I'm talking about.

"Alright kids, have at it but be courteous and remember to only get what you're going to eat", announced my father. And just like that Noah and Braison are racing off to the kid's section of the Garden Cafe. It sounds a bit weird but it's actually ingenious! In a corner of the restaurant, there's a buffet table that is significantly shorter, so that it is a lot easier for kids to serve themselves. It features foods that younger kids enjoy, like hotdogs, burgers, and my personal favorite, Mac and Cheese.

But anyways, after about 20 minutes of piling my plate with food, I finally sit down at the table with the rest of my family. Noah and Braison are of course eating burgers and Mac and Cheese, because they're not very adventurous. My parents, on the other hand, have completely outdone themselves. My dad alone has about three plates of food in front of him! Seems like he should've taken his own advice right? This thought makes me chuckle and my dad shoots me a confused look.

"Miley, what are you laughing about?", he asks inquisitively.

"Nothing, Dad. I just find it funny that you told us all to serve ourselves with moderation but you went absolutely crazy", I say while laughing.

"Well, it started off with moderation but then I saw the fried foods and you know I just couldn't control myself!", exclaimed my dad. Yup, that's my dad and he sure likes his food.

Everyone continues to eat in silence and as I'm eating, I start surveying my surroundings to see if I can catch a glimpse of McHandsome. I looked in all directions of the restaurant but I didn't spot him anywhere. A part of me is relieved and another part is a bit upset. Although I made a complete fool of myself in front of him and he probably thinks I'm socially awkward, I sure would like another gaze into his beautiful eyes... Or another gaze at his beautiful muscles...

"Miley, earth to Miley!"

My eyes shoot up to meet my mother's and she could tell that I was a bit confused.

"Miley, are you ready to go? I've been trying to get your attention for the past 20 seconds or so", my mom explains. "What were you thinking so deeply about?"

I was so lost in my own thoughts about McHandsome (and slightly drooling too), that I didn't even realize my family get up and get ready to leave the restaurant. "Uh nothing mom. Just visualizing how great this vacation is going to be", I said with a smile.

"Alright, dear. Well let's stop visualizing and let's start doing!" Like I said before, my mother is very corny, but she makes me laugh.

Maybe it was because everyone completely pigged out or maybe it was because we had all been up since about 6 AM but the Stewart family was feeling quite groggy after lunch. As a result, we did what we usually do after lunch on the first day and we decided to check out our cabin, settle in and take a little recharging nap before the Bon Voyage party up on the pool deck.

To get to our cabin, we walked across the pool deck to the other side of the ship and I was taking in all of my surroundings. The pool was stunning and there were several hot tubs stationed all around it. There were even a few people in the pool at the far end, which was pretty odd to see at this time of day on the first day aboard. Usually people are either still boarding the ship, eating at the Garden Cafe, or even exploring the ship. As we get closer to the far end of the pool, my eyes lock on to boy I've been thinking about since his hand touched mine earlier in the day. It was none other than McHandsome. And boy was he looking ever so handsome right now.

There he was, playfully wrestling with another boy with similar facial features, that seemed to be about the same age. I couldn't really see his upper body from where I was standing, or his face much for that matter, but I could already tell that if McHandsome looked sexy with clothes on, he'd be gorgeous while half naked.

I silently thanked God for the fact that he had his back towards me and that my family was walking ahead of me, otherwise they would all be able to see the blush all over my face. I decide to pick up the pace a bit, just in case he turns around. I don't want him to see me and force another uncomfortable conversation.

I slyly cut around my parents and was almost into the hallway, in the clear, when I made the mistake of looking back at the pool. And guess what? There he was, staring at me. When my eyes met his, I felt a jolt of electricity run through my body and I swear that my heart stopped in my chest. I was melting like silly putty from the way he looked in that moment, with his hair slicked back and that sexy smile plastered on his face.

What happened next was utterly humiliating, and that's saying a lot considering my epic brain-fart in the area of the English language this morning. I guess I had stopped dead in my tracks and was just staring at him because the next thing I know, he's waving at me and before I can even think about lifting my hand to wave back at him, my dad comes bumping into me and knocking me off balance.

That sounds pretty embarrassing, right? Well it gets worse. As if social awkwardness wasn't enough, I was also blessed with the trait of being a total klutz. Being knocked off balance + Klutz trait = tripping and falling. And that's exactly what happened... Right in front of McHandsome... Falling straight on my butt... As he was expecting a wave back... It's like my body decided, "No Miley, waves are too mainstream. How about we step it up to a trip AND a fall for added dramatic effect!" To say that I wanted to instantly disappear was an understatement. Why it is that I can't function when McHandsome is looking at me, is beyond me but if I didn't blow it the first time, I certainly blew it now.


	3. Chapter 3 - Blue-Green Eyes

A/N: First off, I just wanted to say thank you to the wonderful people who left the nice reviews for last chapter. You guys made my day. Secondly, I wanted to let you know that for the first time, you'll be seeing life through Nick's eyes in this chapter. It's also a little longer than my usual chapters :). Lastly, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and please make sure to review/favorite/follow. Thank you guys! (P.S. The moment you guys are waiting for is coming in the next chapter. It's going to be great! ;))

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Before I can cause myself anymore public embarrassment, I got up and scurried into the hallway, away from the pool. I leaned against the wall of the hallway and buried my face in my hands to try to get a grip on myself. I was so embarrassed that I didn't even want to show my face again, much less see McHandsome ever again. Seconds later, my whole family was by my side asking me if I'm okay and what happened back there.

"I'm so sorry Miles, I didn't see you there. I wasn't paying attention and I thought you were behind me", said my dad with an apologetic tone as he put his hand on my shoulder.

"Are you hurt Miles?", asks Braison.

I remove my face from my hands and say, "No Braison, I'm not hurt, not physically at least. And it's okay Dad, it was an accident." And with that, my dad pulls me into a hug and rubs my back in an apologetic manner.

We continue making our way to our cabin on the eighth floor. After a short elevator trip down, more excited talk from my family and more silence from me, we finally reach our floor and find our cabin room. Since my parents wanted this to be a bonding trip, they decided that we should all share one cabin for the week, which was going to be quite interesting. Usually four people in one cabin is already too crowded and now there will be five of us sharing one room and bathroom. Oh joy.

"Well kids, now that we have arrived at the room, I'll give you your key cards. Braison, you're old enough to have your keycard but be careful not to lose it. If you do, it'll be a hassle to get you a new one", my mom said while handing out the keycards. "Noah, you're still a young, sweetheart, so I'll just keep yours safely with mine. And here's yours Miley."

"Now guys, before you go and put anything pricey on our tab with your keycard, make sure you clear it with your mother and I. I don't want any surprises at the end of this trip."

Since Noah didn't get the privilege of holding onto her keycard, my parents let her be the first to open the door of the stateroom. What was inside was pure beauty. Sure the five of us would be sharing one stateroom but it was a lot more spacious than I remembered it. There was a queen bed at the far end of the room, that was neatly made up. On top of the bed was a cute little welcome fruit basket. There was a beautiful but quaint bathroom to the right and a set of bunkbeds to the left. To say that I was in love with the room is an understatement.

"Wow mommy, this looks so cool", said Noah as she raced and dived onto the queen bed. "I call this one!"

"No kiddo, the big bed is for the big people. You'll be on one of the bunks of the bunk beds or on the extra bed that they will be setting up tonight. So you guys can figure out the sleeping arrangements on your own", replied my dad before collapsing onto the queen sized bed.

Before my brother or sister could react, I lunged towards the top bunk of the bunk beds and laid down. "I'm the oldest so this one is mine, haha suckers!" Of course my siblings moaned and groaned, especially Braison, but after how this trip was looking, I deserve the first choice on sleeping arrangements.

Braison settles into the bunk below mine and Noah joins my parents in the queen sized bed, since hers hasn't been set up yet. And just like that, we all decide to take an hour nap to regain energy for the Bon Voyage Party on the pool deck.

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**Nick's POV**

"Hey Joe! Pass me the football!", I yell across the pool to my brother who is currently acting like a goofball. Instead of being consistent with our game of catch in the pool, he takes time to mess with my little brother Frankie by taunting him with the ball. That's Joe for you, a bit on the immature side.

Today was a perfect day, just like everyday should be. Since my family and I boarded the Norwegian Dawn, I've been enjoying the pool. My only complaint thus far is the fact that the pool is a salt water pool instead of a chlorinated one. That completely caught me off guard when I attempted to open my eyes underwater... Ouch, never again.

But anyways, with senior year of high school in full swing, I'm glad that I get to escape all the stressful work and college applications for a week. While all my friends were in class slaving away, I'd be on this beautiful pool deck in the middle of the Caribbean. I wasn't too excited about the idea at first, just because my whole family is aboard the ship. But after today, I really can't complain. I haven't seen much of my parents or Kevin and his girlfriend, Danielle, and I've been able to do whatever I want all day. Awesome!

While completely zoning out in thought about today, I didn't notice that Joe was throwing the football in my direction. Lucky for me, it didn't hit me in the face. Unlucky for me, it landed right in front of me with a splash and I got a handful of salt water into my eyes. Again.

"Damn it, Joe! Couldn't you warn me first? You blinded me with the salt water!" Yes, I was a little dramatic about that but I was trying to convey my frustrations.

"Well, I thought you were paying attention! Here's a hint, Nick: If you ask for the ball, you should probably be paying attention to catch it", he said with a smirk and then turned around to dunk Frankie's head underwater. Poor Frankie and poor me.

I shot Joe a glare and chucked the football hard enough to cause a huge splash when it hit the water. "Hey Joe, heads up!" Now he was suffering the same eye pains as me. Hahaha, sucker...

We've been in the pool for so long that I hardly noticed the fact that the Crew Members were setting up tables and grills near the pool for the Bon Voyage Party. If it weren't for the smell of the ribs barbecuing, I wouldn't have even remembered the party. "It's a good thing I've been in the pool all day", I thought to myself, "I'm already in my swim trunks."

As the smell of grilled hotdogs, burgers, and ribs fill the air, the crowd of people by the pool begins to grow, and after a significant amount of people show up, I decided it would be best to get out of the pool for awhile to enjoy the festivities. Right on cue, I see my parents and Kevin and Danielle walking towards us as we grab towels from the towel bin.

"Well, well, well! Look who decided to come out of the pool!" exclaimed my dad with his arms outstretched towards the sky. "Are you guys ready for the party?" he says as he starts to do a little hula dance while shuffling back and forth across the deck.

"Stop dad...", Joe groans, "you're embarrassing us and scaring off all the hot girls!"

"Scaring off the hot girls? C'mon Joe, you do that all by yourself with your face", replied Kevin while giving Joe a light punch on the shoulder.

"Whatever Kevin, by the end of this cruise, I'm going to have hooked up with at least a handful of girls." And with that, Joe turned around, raced off across the pool deck and disappeared into the hallway that leads to the ship.

"Joseph, you better behave yourself!", my mom called after him but he was already gone. She turned to us and said, "he may be 21 now, but I'll still give him a good ear yanking if necessary!" We all started laughing because we knew my mom was being completely serious.

After a short conversation with my family where we each discussed what we would be doing for the next few hours, everyone decided to go their own way. Joe was long gone, doing God knows what. My parents and Frankie were going to go find a table on the deck right above the pool deck, which was completely open to the pool deck below. And Kevin and Danielle left to go sign up for the dance contest that will be taking place tonight.

That just left me. And guess what I was going to go do? Grub on some ribs. Oh yeah! I headed towards the tables toward the back of the pool deck, near the entrance to the Garden Cafe, and I got in the now long line. While waiting, I started zoning out and looking at my surroundings. There were people in the hot tubs stationed at the four corners of the pool and finally people had gotten into the actual pool. I also noticed that a DJ was setting up his equipment on the little stage that overlooked the pool. People from the deck above were gathering around the banisters and looking down at the activities happening. This was looking like it would be a very festive party and you could tell that there was a lot of excitement from all of the passengers aboard the Norwegian Dawn.

Finally it was my turn up on the buffet table and I was met with the most incredible hospitality from the crew members. They all had genuine smiles on their faces and seemed very happy to be able to serve you. But anyways, I was making my way to the stairs to go sit with my parents and Frankie while I ate, and Joe happens to reappear. This time, with a girl.

"Hey, little bro! Thanks for the ribs!." he says as he takes a few ribs from my plate and runs off with the mystery girl. As he stole the plates, however, he caused the hotdogs to roll off and stain my abdomen and white swim trunks with ketchup. "Fuck you, Joe", I cursed under my breath.

Now I have to go clean myself off and change my shorts. Damn kid, always messing around! I headed towards the elevator, and pressed the down button in a hurry. If there was one thing I really admired about this ship, it was the way that the elevator walls were made out of glass so you could see the passengers passing through decks 7, 8,9 and 10 if you stood in the lobby. It was absolutely beautiful.

The elevator finally reached the 12th floor and I got on, pressing the button for deck 9. It started moving downward so I reclined against the railing. The elevator stopped on the tenth floor to let a family on, so I glanced to my right as they boarded. In the precise second that I looked over, I caught a glance of the same beautiful brunette from earlier today.

After today's run ins, I could pick those mesmerizing eyes out of a crowd. Her hair was perfectly framed around her face and she was wearing a bikini and clutching a towel. Damn, she is so hot... I subconsciously smiled to myself because she looked so angelic just standing there with that lost look in her eyes. Those eyes...

I don't know if this was another coincidence or if this was fate messing with me, but for the third time today, my brown eyes met her light blue-green ones. Just like that, I knew I had to make her mine.


End file.
